Second to None
by AubreyWitch
Summary: There is no best in her triangle, only other. BI SHOT CITRUS NaruSaku, implied SasuSaku
1. Chapter 1

Naruto and Sakura had been sleeping together—that is sharing a bed together—for two weeks when Sakura awoke to the sensation of Naruto's hand between her thighs. There was a moment of disappointment when she opened her eyes to see him peering down at her, watching her face in concentration as he slipped his fingers in and out of her, squirmed them inside of her—for she had been dreaming of Sasuke and making love, but she simply closed her eyes and let herself _pretend_.

Naruto's efforts were fumbled in his inexperience, but the dream had been good enough, felt real enough, brought her close enough, that her mouth parted in a surprised "O" and her back arched clear off the bed when she came.

Sakura re-opened her eyes when her muscles stopped clenching just in time to glimpse Naruto's triumphant half-smile. His arms were on either side of her now where he propped himself up, and when he leaned down to kiss her, she turned her face away. He paused, inches from her skin, mouth winced to keep from crying and silently slid off the side of the bed. Sakura continued to stare to the side, unseeing, until she heard the bathroom door slam shut.

* * *

He wasn't sure what had woken him so early in the morning, but something was definitely different. He could feel it—the familiar tingling beneath his skin as he lay awake, unmoving in the darkness, but he hadn't been dreaming about—and then he heard it. Soft, and lightly, almost breathless. Sakura was moaning. His eyes widened in shock, the realization both exciting and terrifying at the same instant. Suddenly his mouth was dry. Was she—? He dared a glimpse to his right, hands gripping the sheets on either side of him, feeling enthralled and guilty at the thought and half expecting her instantaneous wrath for peeking, and was surprised to find her still asleep. It was then that she rolled over with a throaty groan, one hand gripping the front of his shirt, the other buried beneath the pillow. Somehow her legs had become tangled in his, the heat of her pressed against his thigh, and her breath—oh god her breath—was coming out in hot, quick pants against his neck. When had he leaned into her? His hand was cradling the small of her back, and he knew he shouldn't but her knee bumped between his legs and her lips brushed over his skin and she whined, "Sasuke-kun."

He bit down on his lip, suddenly tasting blood, to hold back his sob. "Sakura-chan. That's too much."

He was throbbing and sweating and starting to pant himself. If she kept writhing against him like this . . . He closed his eyes, willing his heart beat to slow. She didn't want him. She . . . was sucking on his earlobe, whispering naughty things that made his breath hitch in his throat. Things he never imagined she would say to him. Or anyone else for that matter. If he could untangle himself and get to the bathroom—

And then she did it. The one thing he couldn't deny. She begged him.

* * *

The next night Naruto lies still as Sakura slides into place against him, because even though it hurts him, he'll take what he can get when it comes to her. He lies awake long after she has fallen asleep, blue eyes wide and unblinking, right arm cramped under the weight of her body, because he can't stop remembering the night after their fourth date (they weren't really dates except that he'd pay and sometimes she'd relent to his pestering and give him a kiss on the cheek) when after walking her home she had with a slight blush first asked him to stay. He felt his face grow hot at the implication of her words, and was barely able to stop grinning long enough to beam, "Saaakura-chan! I knew it." He was mid-'heehee' when her fist connected to his face and his feet left the ground. She had stormed inside the empty house leaving him to cradle his bruised jaw, but the door was open so he picked himself up and followed her in. When her parents returned a few days later, she made the seamless transition to his apartment and had remained ever since. She's never talked about it, and he doesn't ask.

But the truth is, Sakura didn't start sleeping with Naruto because he returned after two long years, though she had missed him terribly. She started shortly after their last attempt at rescuing Sasuke. Because once again she had failed to save someone she loved. Because she was left hurting and lonely. And because ultimately he was the only one who could understand that pain. Even still, the fact that their bodies fit perfectly together—her forehead resting in the crook of his neck, her breath tickling his collar bone as he nearly crushes her against him in need—hasn't managed to escaped her. He's larger than he used to be—nearly a foot taller, shoulders and back broader, arms stronger. His skin is surprisingly warm to the touch. Why then does she feel so cold at his side? He's the only teammate she has left, but does she even know him anymore? Somewhere along the way, she thinks she's lost herself as well.

The next morning, he's already awake when she sits up to rub the sleep from her eyes. It's not like him to wake before her, and he has yet to greet her with his usual, "Good morning, Saaakura-chan!" so she glances over her shoulder in slight concern. He's just lying there, the same as always except maybe a little paler and watching her with that wounded expression he can never really hide. She rakes her hand through tangled, pink hair with a sigh. "Naruto—" His eyes lock with hers, and she can't help but think how blue they really are. And somehow constant.

They both know what she's going to say. _Maybe I should just go back home._

"I'm sorry, Sakura-chan; I shouldn't have done that." The words sound hollow and forced, but those blue eyes assure her it won't happen again.

She looks away, and the issue is settled. She doesn't want to think on it again.

* * *

Only now Sakura can't stop watching him. She finds the fluid way he moves when he fights captivating and focuses on the movement of his lips when he forms words. He twirls the kunai idly around his finger between throws, always fidgeting, comfortable with a deadly weapon. He's energetic and raw, loud, and full of wide smiles when he looks at her. She's taken to following Naruto around during the day which both surprises and delights him. She sits in the grass while he trains and plucks countless blades between her fingers. Afterwards, he flops down beside her, arms spread wide and stares at the endless sky. When she's not looking, he watches her out of the corner of his eye. Somehow it always amazes him to watch her pick wild flowers delicately with hands strong enough to crush boulders. She twirls tiny stems between fingertips and sticks them in her hair.

"Sakura-chan?"

She looks to him half-heartedly, still occupied by her flowers. "Hmm?"

_I love you._

He only smiles, and after a moment she looks away.

Now she meets him for lunch in between her time at the hospital and has him shop at the grocery store with her for dinner. When she lets him, he holds her hand. Somewhere along the way he's started referring to his apartment as _theirs_.

* * *

It's one night several months later when he whispers in her ear, "I promise, I'll bring him back for you," that she knows. She crawls on top of his bare chest, and he watches her in wonder but doesn't dare speak to ruin the moment. She rakes her fingernails lightly over his soft skin as she pushes his arms up over his head and presses his wrists into the mattress with her weight.

She leans down and whispers against his lips, "I know," before kissing him.

His mouth is warm and somehow tastes familiar.

Afterwards he says, "I don't want to be second best," and she says, "I know."

There is no best in her triangle, only other.


	2. Chapter 2

Sakura would like to say she hasn't thought of Sasuke since she's been with Naruto, but that isn't true. She hasn't thought of him as much, which is good enough in her eyes. Her mother and Ino are quick to tell her that she should have moved on already (_It's been nearly three years, forehead girl._) but she knows Naruto understands. She's made more progress than he has, after all.

She likes to rub her thumbs across the lines on his cheeks—the ones that mark him a demon container—as he falls asleep, and she knows now if it came down to the two of them which one she'd give her life to save.

"I won't lose another."

He "hmm"s softly in response and snuggles closer against the front of her, not bothering to wake up enough to process her words, used to her random musings by now. "I love you, Sakura-chan."

She smiles into his hair and answers, "I know."

The corners of his mouth quirk and he licks his lips, tempted to tease her in any number of ways but that would require thought process so instead he sighs and lets himself slip comfortably into unconsciousness.

She never answers him in like kind, but he doesn't mind. In the past four months he's gotten more attention from Sakura than he ever dreamed possible. And while he knows she belongs to his best friend, the thought of breaking his promise in order to keep her has only ever crossed his mind once—and it made him sick. Even if it costs him his life, he is going to save Sasuke, and not just for her. It's eating away at him, the closer it gets to losing him forever, the more time that slips through his fingers. But he's going to save him because he can't bare to lose such an important person through his own shortcomings, and when the time comes he'll give up Sakura to him, for him, because god knows Sasuke deserves something decent in his life.

Or he did. Still does? He can't decide. It's getting harder with each failed confrontation to believe that Sasuke is still Sasuke, but he's not ready to give up on him yet. If anyone can rehabilitate him it's Sakura, and that thought somehow makes him happy even as it breaks his heart.

_I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts_, he's decided.

It's too bad that she only whispers, "Love you, too" when he's sleeping.

She's only said it a handful of nights, but she likes the way the words feel when they slip past her lips. It reminds her a little bit of how she felt for Sasuke all those years ago, maybe how she feels still only in a more painful way, but it's somehow different, how she feels about Naruto. With Sasuke she knew right away. It was a decision. Just the sight of him made her blush, and since Sakura Haruno had only ever gotten _second best_, she decided no matter what (Ino-Pig be damned) she was going to get the skinny, dark-haired Uchiha who _liked_ to glare at her and call Naruto names. She knows now that as much as he claimed otherwise, he needed them. And somewhere along the way she won the small part of his heart he had left. It just wasn't enough to change anything.

She realizes now how much Naruto needed them, too, and regrets a little how she treated him. But she doesn't know how to apologize for not knowing better so she doesn't. She guesses he's forgiven her anyways.

She was easily annoyed back then by the loud-mouthed kid who was always goofing off, always getting into trouble and recklessly challenging Sasuke. But somewhere along the way he grew on her with those wide smiles and determination, became her teammate and companion as important to her as the boy who was constantly frowning, who insulted her regularly but placed himself between her and harm's way without hesitation.

Sakura continues brushing her fingers down the side of his face long after the rise and fall of Naruto's chest has become steady and contemplates waking him for a late night romp. Her cheeks burn at the idea and she closes her eyes, determined to fall asleep instead. Naruto would never deny her, she's not worried about that, but it's a level they haven't reached yet—well except for that one mishap—and she's not sure she's willing to cross that line. Once she does, she's sure she can never go back. On his part, he's never asked her which seems uncharacteristically patient of him and both relieves and irritates her at the same time. If he were to pressure her, she could always blame it on him later. But this way, everything rests in her hands. She's never understood how he could trust her with so much and not give it a second thought. But if she thinks about it, he's been the same with Sasuke, trusting him to still care even after everything. She wishes she could believe in Sasuke the way Naruto does—unconditionally, unadulterated.

Really, she loves them both the same. It would be perfect if the three of them could live together, fighting and loving and needing forever, but she knows now it will never be that way. _This isn't a fairytale_, she thinks. But for Naruto's sake she hopes their story has a happy ending. He deserves it after all this time of never giving up, never giving in. How many nights did he spend alone?

As she drifts off to sleep, comfortable with the weight of Naruto on her chest, she resolves to herself, _never again_.


End file.
